Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Rabbit Hole
Tea Description:
Delicious, ripe raspberries explode with blueberries and strawberries to create this beautiful berry brew. Works well hot or iced up with a dash of honey if you like it that way. The perfect afternoon pick me up.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
As summer slowly comes to an end – a bit too slowly for my liking, really, I mean, come on! I’m ready for the cooler weather already! – I find that this tea is ready to remind me of all the delicious flavors that summer offers. Really, is there any food that says summer more than fresh, juicy berries? And this tea embraces three of my favorite berries – strawberry, raspberry and blueberry – In one tasty cup.
The moment I opened the package of this tea, I knew I was in for a berry delicious treat! The berry aroma was so delightful and strong … YUM! The fragrance of the brewed tea is softer than that of the dry leaf, but it still smells incredibly yummy.
This is one of those teas that tastes best if you’ve given it a few moments to cool down to a drinkable temperature … and it gets better the more it cools! When drunk very hot, the flavors are not easily discerned in the sip, but, definitely explode in the aftertaste. Delicious berry flavor … sweet and tart and juicy! But after it’s cooled to a still-hot-but-not-piping-hot temperature, the berry flavor really comes to life.
The berry flavor is quite remarkable – I taste each of the berries, and usually with these berry medley type teas I find that the flavors become sort of jumbled into a super-berry kind of flavor where I taste notes of each but they all sort of meld together into one unified flavor. That doesn’t happen here.
Instead, I taste the strawberry. It is sweet and luscious and reminds me of those days in the summer when I rush home after visiting the produce market and buy a bunch of the berries … I have to grab a few immediately because if I don’t, they’ll be gone (I have a tween-ager daughter who loves the berries more than I do!) And I taste the blueberry, juicy and just a little bit tart. And I taste the raspberry: sweet, intense flavor with a tangy, tarty finish that tickles the tongue.
And even though the berry flavors are absolutely divine, this IS a black tea and this tea won’t let you forget that. It has a pleasant, full flavor that is brisk yet mild enough to let the berry flavors come through. A pleasing, mellow cup that would be very enjoyable as an afternoon cuppa – alone or with friends!
But where this tea really shines is as an iced tea. It is sweet and flavorful enough to serve straight – with no additions at all – but a little bit of sugar goes a long way to perk up the flavors a bit (or perhaps a drizzle of honey as suggested by Rabbit Hole!) And as I sip this, I wonder how wonderful it would taste with a sprig of mint!
A lovely tea that reminds me of the beauty of summer.
Chocolate Cherry Bomb! from The Tea Spot
Savings Alert! Don’t miss out! Please read the note at the bottom of the review for additional savings when you purchase this tea from The Tea Spot!
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Tea Spot
Tea Description:
This chocolate covered cherry will having you feeling like a kid in a candy store! Think hand-dipped chocolate cherry truffle… sweet, plump, juicy, decadent – without the calories. Its cherry scent and velvety smooth chocolate notes work to enchant, but not overwhelm. Handcrafted from two black teas this gourmet cherry delight is a dessert tea that you can enjoy even for breakfast. The base of black leaf teas from India and China is balanced, deep, and strong enough for milk and sugar, if that’s your cuppa.
Learn more about this chocolate cherry tea here.
Taster’s Review:
There was a time when chocolate covered cherries were the pinnacle of chocolate decadence for me, it was my absolute favorite confection! My taste buds have matured since then and I’ve come to appreciate other foods and enjoy other sweets more than chocolate covered cherries, but, there is still a special spot in my heart for chocolate covered cherries (so long as they’re the good ones!) So, I was pretty sure I’d enjoy this tea … especially since I so enjoyed the Chocolate “O” from The Tea Spot. I figured the addition of cherry flavor to this amazing chocolate tea would make it even more amazing.
Mmm! It is good. I don’t know that I enjoy this more than I enjoy the Chocolate “O” but, I really like it. The chocolate flavors are rich and taste of deep, dark chocolate. YUM! And the cherry notes start out subtle, and develop as I continue to sip. They never become overwhelming, and I like that. The cherry serves more as an accent to the rich, creamy taste of the chocolate rather than a stand alone flavor. And I really like that it doesn’t taste like cough syrup, which I’ve noticed sometimes happens with cherry flavored teas.
The black tea is a bolder taste than I expected for a flavored tea – it almost took me by surprise. It is not content with sitting off in the background offering support for the flavors of this blend, it wants some of the attention for itself! The black tea blend is strong and invigorating – strong enough to even serve as a breakfast tea if you’re so inclined to have a Chocolate Cherry Bomb! for breakfast. There is a fair amount of dry astringency to this cup as well, an aspect I find rather enjoyable as it gives the chocolate tones a bit of a powdery cocoa kind of taste.
I do recommend allowing this to cool a bit before sipping it. The flavor becomes so much smoother after it’s had time to cool to a drinkable temperature. I also recommend not over-doing it when you measure the tea leaves – this tea is plenty strong without the extra leaf, and I found that the extra leaf just leads to a slightly harsh tasting tea. It’s better to measure carefully with this tea … the proper measurement will lead to a very satisfying cuppa with no harshness! This is delicious hot (after it’s cooled for about five minutes, of course!) and would make a very flavorful iced tea as well. It would also make a very delightful latte!
SAVINGS ALERT! Now through September 15th, you can save an additional 15% on the Chocolate Cherry Bomb! tea from The Tea Spot. Just enter the code chocolove in the coupon field at checkout to enjoy your savings!